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max

Wednesday

AC quit working and green stuff is all over the compressor?

PLEASE HELP.MY CAR AC IS NOT WORKING AND COMPRESSOR IS LEAKING SOME GREEN SUBSTANCE.WHAT IS THE PROBLEM AND WHAT SHOULD I DO ?-----------

OK.

The ac compressor needs to be lubricated with oil just as any moving part. The ac oil is in the ac system. Ac oil flows with the refrigerant. So... if refrigerant is leaking, the oil is leaking as well. AC oil contains dye which is green in color and glows under a UV light (black light) so a leak can easily be located.

Now that that is out of the way...

The green stuff you see all over the compressor is oil with dye. This means the compressor is leaking and needs to be replaced.

Keep in mind that if the refrigerant level is low, the oil is not flowing properly through out the system which inturn leads to poor/no AC compressor lubrication. Extended ac operation will lead to compressor locking up. The ac system has 2 switches. A low pressure switch and a high pressure switch. The low pressure switch shuts off the compressor when the refrigerant level is too low to protect the compressor. The high pressure switch turns off the compressor in the event the pressures get too high due to a blockage, condenser airflow restriction, or other failure to protect the compressor and keep lines from blowing out. Generally, the low side is turned off at 20 psi and the high side turns off at 450psi. Normal pressures are: High side 250psi, Low side 35 psi, +/- depending on outside temperature and humidity.

What you likely have is a compressor that developed a leak. Once the refrigerant leaked out, the low pressure switch disabled the compressor.

you have 2 choices.

Recharge the system and see how long it will last which will run about $80.

Or replace the compressor, accumulator, orifice, and a strong suggestion to flush the ac system. Refill the system with proper amount of oil (pag-100), seal the system back up, vacuum the system down for a minimum of 45 minutes, and recharge with refrigerant. This will run about $650 to $800 depending on the shop. However... I STRONGLY SUGGEST you DO NOT use a used, rebuilt, remanufactured compressor. They are JUNK. Use a quality new part.

-----------THANK YOU.--------

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